GAME #15: MARIST RED FOXES (8-6, 4-1 MAAC) AT MANHATTAN JASPERS (2-12, 1-4 MAAC)
Monday, January 12, 2015-11 a.m.
Riverdale, N.Y.-Draddy Gymnasium (2,520)
Video: JasperVision, MAAC.tv
Audio: www.gojaspers.com, www.goredfoxes.com
GAME INFORMATION
The 2014-15 season reaches its midway point this morning, as Manhattan (2-12, 1-4 MAAC) welcomes nine-time defending MAAC champion Marist (8-6, 4-1 MAAC) to Draddy Gymnasium for the annual “Kid's Day Out” matchup. Approximately 850 students from local elementary schools will be in attendance at today's game, with the winners of an essay contest being recognized at halftime. The Jaspers last played on Friday night, when they dropped a 79-62 decision to Iona. Marist is coming off a 63-60 victory at Monmouth on Saturday afternoon.
THE JASPERS
The Jaspers (2-12, 1-4 MAAC) are looking to rebound after a 79-62 loss to Iona on Friday night. Junior forward Shayna Ericksen, who had her fourth double-double of the season against Iona, leads Manhattan in both scoring and rebounding. She averages 10.6 points and 6.8 boards per game. Ericksen is also fourth in the MAAC in field goal percentage (.518). Freshman guard Nyasha Irizarry contributes 8.6 points per outing, and she distributed a team-high 2.6 assists per contest. Freshman center Kayla Grimme, meanwhile, records 1.8 blocks a night to go along with 6.0 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. Sophomore guard Maeve Parahus drains 1.7 three-pointers per contest and is shooting .364 from beyond the arc. As a team, the Jaspers are shooting .750 at the free throw line, the third-best mark in the MAAC. Manhattan concludes its school-record eight-game homestand on Friday, when Monmouth (6-9, 2-4 MAAC) visits Draddy Gymnasium at 7 p.m.
THE RED FOXES
Nine-time defending conference champion Marist (8-6, 4-1 MAAC) currently sits third in the MAAC standings. The Red Foxes are coming off a 63-60 win at Monmouth on Saturday. Senior forward/center Tori Jarosz leads Marist with 16.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. She also averages 2.9 blocks per contest. Junior forward/guard Madeline Blais, meanwhile, tallies 15.9 points, 5.7 boards, 1.6 assists and 1.4 blocks per outing. In addition, she leads the MAAC in free throw percentage (.958) and is second in the league in three-point percentage (.435). Blais sinks 2.6 treys per contest. Sophomore forward Katharine Fogarty is second in the MAAC with a free throw percentage of .893, and she grabs 5.0 rebounds per game. Junior guard Sydney Coffey registers 13.3 points and 2.2 assists a night, while senior guard Natalie Gomez-Martinez hands out a team-leading 3.0 assists per game. Marist returns home for a 7 p.m. matchup with Canisius (5-10, 3-3 MAAC) on Friday night.
MANHATTAN VS. MARIST ALL-TIME
This is the 49th all-time meeting between Manhattan and Marist, with the Red Foxes leading the series 25-23. Marist won both games last season and has beaten Manhattan five straight times overall. In 2013-14, the Red Foxes notched a 70-46 victory at McCann Arena on Jan. 3, then posted an 81-54 triumph in the rematch at Draddy Gymnasium on Feb. 23. The Jaspers' last win over the Red Foxes, a 48-44 victory in Riverdale on Feb. 4, 2012, was also the last time Marist lost a MAAC road game.
LAST GAME
The Jaspers built an early 15-4 lead after five minutes, but were unable to hold on in a 79-62 loss to Iona at Draddy Gymnasium on Friday night. Manhattan scored the first five points of the game and opened up an 11-point cushion on a Nyasha Irizarry three-pointer at the 14:46 mark of the first half. However, Iona rallied to take the lead with four minutes remaining before halftime, and the Gaels held a 35-28 advantage at the break. Manhattan pulled within five early in the second half, but the Gaels eventually extended their lead to as many as 27 points before the Jaspers ended the game on a 13-3 run to make the final score 79-62. Shayna Ericksen notched her fourth double-double of the season with 22 points and 10 rebounds, while Kylla Champagne posted career-highs of 11 points and 10 boards for her first career double-double.
KID'S DAY OUT
This is the fifth consecutive year in which the Jaspers are hosting “Kid's Day Out” at Draddy Gymnasium. An initiative started by the MAAC, each of the conference's 11 schools designate one home game each season as “Kid's Day Out,” where they invite students at local elementary schools onto campus for a women's basketball game. This year, Manhattan is happy to welcome approximately 850 students from Community School 300, Lighthouse Charter School, P.S. 93, P.S. 107 and P.S. 279. The students wrote essays on the topic, “Who is your sports hero and why?,” and the winners will be presented with t-shirts at halftime.
STREAK BUSTERS
Marist has won 39 of its last 41 MAAC road games. The only two losses during that span have come at Draddy Gymnasium. The Jaspers knocked off the Red Foxes, 65-62, on Feb. 28, 2010, then snapped Marist's 34-game overall winning streak against conference foes with a 48-44 triumph in Riverdale on Feb. 4, 2012. The Red Foxes have since won 24 straight MAAC road games. The last MAAC team other than Manhattan to beat Marist at home was Fairfield on Feb. 9, 2010.